Phil O'Donnell (footballer) - Tributes

Tributes

Former Scottish First Minister Jack McConnell, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw, was among those to pay tribute. He hailed the midfielder as a "great professional."

Motherwell and other fans laid flowers, scarves, strips and other mementos at the gates of Fir Park. The club's scheduled SPL game against Hibs at Easter Road the following Wednesday was postponed along with the club's home game with Celtic the following Sunday out of respect. Scottish Premier League chairman Lex Gold said: "We understand from Phil's family that they would appreciate it if the Motherwell v Celtic game scheduled for 6 January 2008 could be postponed. Both clubs are happy to meet the request and we have called the game off." On 31 December the SPL postponed the Celtic v Rangers fixture scheduled for 2 January 2008 following a request by O'Donnell's former club Celtic, which was agreed by Rangers.

Players in 30 December's Premier League matches between Derby County and Blackburn Rovers, and Manchester City and Liverpool, wore black bands in his honour. Sheffield Wednesday's matches at Hull City and at home to Preston North End were preceded by a minute's applause as a mark of respect to their former player, with the Hillsborough flags flying at half mast. All Premier League matches in the New Year programme were preceded with either a minute of applause or silence in O'Donnell's memory. While playing for Everton, James McFadden, a former Motherwell player, dedicated his goal to O'Donnell in Everton's 2–0 win at Middlesbrough by pointing solemnly to his black armband and then towards the sky.

Nottingham Forest opted not to show their respects before their Football League One match with Huddersfield Town on New Year's Day. Forest manager Colin Calderwood, himself a former Scottish international with 36 caps, explained: "I didn't particularly want a tribute. Sometimes I don't think it's appropriate to have them for every tragedy that happens. The fact that it was a boy in Scotland, does that make it any different to a boy in Colombia?" Calderwood later apologised for any offence caused by the comments, after he had been appointed manager of SPL club Hibernian on November 2010.

Thousands of tributes from around the world have been posted on the internet. Motherwellfc.co.uk has received hundreds of written tributes from fans as far as Korea and Ukraine, as well as many emotional messages from Sevilla F.C., comparing O'Donnell's death to the similar tragedy of Antonio Puerta earlier in the season. Sevilla director of football Ramon Rodríguez Monchi said, "This is terrible news. Right now, my thoughts are with Phil's family and everybody at Motherwell. Unfortunately, with the death of Phil O'Donnell, Motherwell have suffered a similar tragedy to ours. Antonio Puerta died at the beginning of the season and I know how terrible the whole experience is. Sevilla will be available to help in any way that we are able, to heal the pain and sadness of this tragic loss."

Motherwell announced the Main Stand at Fir Park will be renamed The Phil O'Donnell Stand as a permanent tribute and his team-mates paid their own personal tribute by having his signature embroidered on their strips for the remainder of the 2007/08 season. On November 2011, a permanent memorial to O'Donnell was erected on the side of the stand bearing his name.

On 25 May 2008, a benefit match was held at Celtic Park in memory of O'Donnell with the proceeds going to various charities. The match was between a Celtic side drawn from their 1998 title winning squad and a Motherwell side drawn from their 1991 Scottish Cup win. Other players such as David Clarkson and James McFadden played in the game. Henrik Larsson described the match as "a sad occasion but at the same time it's a kind of celebration for everything." The match finished 5–1, in front of 60,000.

There is also the annual sponsored walk, that started on 29 December 2008, that is held on that day to honour O'Donnell's memory. The walk starts from Fir Park and ends at Celtic Park, the homes of two of O'Donnell's former clubs. The money raised from the walk goes directly to charities such as the British Heart Foundation and Mary's Meals.

In December 2010, a number of fellow Scottish footballers that had played alongside Phil had thought of his family announced they would trek up Cotopaxi in Ecuador in memory of Phil to raised £100,000 for the British Heart Foundation. The trek is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2012.

Since O'Donnell's death in 2007, his nephew David Clarkson is the only player to have worn the number 10 shirt, which he had up until his departure in 2009. Since then this number, although not retired, has not been issued to any subsequent player.